Authorities praised for response to fire, meth lab in Lower Macungie

Authorities in Lower Macungie are getting praise for the work they did in response to a fire and subsequent discovery of a methamphetamine lab on Hartford Court last week.

"The Lower Macungie response team was very professional, from volunteers through professional staff," Tom Nelson wrote in letter to township fire marshal George Caldarelli.

"On behalf of all of us on Hartford Court, we would like to thank you for all the efforts and consideration that were displayed and offered to the residents of Indian Creek Village."

Police on Sept. 27 arrested a 34-year-old man after emergency crews went to his mobile home for a fire and found a methamphetamine lab. Nineteen people from 11 homes were evacuated while authorities investigated what was described as a "vapor cloud" that was a byproduct of a chemical reaction fro the meth lab.

Jeffrey Lee Miller Jr., of 5457 Hartford Court, was arraigned last week on charges of manufacturing meth and risking a catastrophe, among other offenses. He was sent to Lehigh County Prison under $500,000 bail.

Miller admitted to police that he had a meth lab, according to the police arrest affidavit. He said he was trying to remove chemicals and waste products he had stored under the mobile home when they caught fire, the affidavit says.

In a letter to the township that is mentioned on the Board of Supervisors Thursday meeting agenda, Nelson wrote that volunteers who greeted evacuees at the Lower Macungie Community Center were "very accommodating and were concerned about our safety."